Bittersweet Memories
by Lady Sanna
Summary: The feeling of guilt kept on creeping up and taunting her, but she knew that her choice was the only one that she could have made. Never again would she be able to hold him in her arms. Mother's Day fic.


A/N This fic is dedicated to all those hardworking, loving moms out there! Happy Mother's Day! Oh, and if you want to make this fic a lot sadder, listen to a slow, rock song maybe played in acoustic guitar. Those always make me want to cry! TT This takes place after Season 9. 

Bittersweet Memories  
Lady Sanna

MOTHER'S DAY  
8:19 AM

Margaret Scully, hoping to sleep in for the day, woke up to a loud knock at her door. The sun rays filtered into her room through the blinds and she rubbed her eyes to regain her vision. She checked the clock then flung the comforter to the side and walked over to the front door.

"Oh! Hello, Dana!" She welcomed her daughter in and enveloped her in a hug.

"Happy Mother's Day, Mom!" Scully revealed a gift bag from behind her and a bouquet of flowers.

"Thank you so much!" Mrs. Scully smiled and set her gifts aside.

Dana cleared her throat, "Um.. Sorry for coming so early-"

"No, it's okay. I know how you two are always so busy. I'm just happy that you were able to come and see me."

"Yeah, me too," Dana gave her mom a small smile.

"So, how's Fox? Is everything all right with him?" her mother asked to keep the conversation moving.

"He's fine. He's just been really preoccupied with our latest case."

"Oh, I see... You know I should really put these flowers in a vase. I'll be right back." She took the bouquet and went over to the kitchen.

'This must be such a hard day for her...' Mrs. Scully thought as she tried to find a vase. When she came back with the flowers, she saw her daughter staring blankly at the family photos. She set the flowers down and walked toward her.

"Are you okay, Dana?"

Scully couldn't reply. She sniffed and looked to the side, so that her mother wouldn't see her tears. Mrs. Scully did the only thing she could do and tried comforting her by wrapping her arms around her.

"I know it hurts, but you did the right thing. You were able to give him more than you know and he probably knows that too." She withdrew and gave her a warm smile.

"Thank you, Mom." Scully managed to return the gesture and looked down to check her watch. "I, um, really have to go now. I'll talk to you later, okay"  
"Okay. Be careful and tell Fox I said hi," Mrs. Scully said as she walked her daughter to the door.

Scully nodded and gave her mother one more hug before she left.

FBI Headquarters  
9:38 AM  
Washington DC

Mulder looked at the clock above his desk then checked his own watch to see if they were the same. It wasn't like Scully to be late and it was definitely not normal for him to be there before her.

He hung his jacket on the coat stand and strode over to his desk. As he was about to open one of the X-Files, something caught his attention. A framed photo of him, Scully, and William sat there staring him straight in the eye. A small tag was attached to it saying: "Sorry it took so long. The Lone Gunmen."

He remembered now. Their photo was taken by of all people, Byers, Langly, and Frohike. They actually insisted upon it.

Flashback

"Okay, tell me again why we're doing this," Scully said, "I mean, why couldn't we just get it done by an actual photographer?"

"Because Scully-" Frohike adjusted the camera lens. "They might get a hold of the negatives and besides we're doing this for free."

"They, as in, the government they?"

He clicked his tongue and gave her a 'You - got - it' sign. "You catch on fast, G-Woman."

William began to fuss and Scully tried to quiet him down with a little stuffed toy giraffe. He looked at it and started to laugh as he heard the little squeaks that it made. A small smile formed on Scully's lips when she saw this.

"Hey, how's little Will doing?" Mulder sat down next to Scully and watched him try to eat the giraffe. "Whoa, don't do that now." He chuckled and managed to wiggle the giraffe free from his son's toothless mouth.

"Okay, are you guys ready?" Byers asked from behind the camera. "Whoa!"

Frohike bumped him out of the way. "Hey, what are you doing, Byers? I said that I was going to take the picture!"

Langly pushed them both out of the way. "Well, excuse me. I'm the professional photographer here, so you guys need to back away." He crossed his arms defiantly.

Frohike and Byers both gave him a look.

"Party pooper," Frohike muttered.

"What?"

"Nothing."

Langly eyed him suspiciously as he and Byers tried to get the lighting just right. "Okay, so let's get the show on the road." He adjusted the camera and hooked it up to the computer. "Ready, Agents?"

"We've been ready for the past ten minutes or so," Scully retorted.

She leaned over to Mulder's ear.

"I told you we should've gone to a professional."

Mulder smiled a bit and nodded in agreement. "Hey, what can you do with friends like these?"

"Okay! We're up and running. Frohike, try to get William's attention," Byers directed.

"No problemo." He squeaked the toy giraffe and sometimes made faces to make Will smile or even laugh. "Look! It's Mr. Giraffe!"

Mulder and Scully couldn't help but laugh a little. It was odd seeing Frohike act like this. Thankfully, his little masquerade got a smile out of their son and instantly, the flash went off.

End Flashback

Delicately, Mulder traced his finger over the photo. A wave of sadness washed over him and he was lost in his memories of those few days with his son. They were so vivid in his thoughts that he could just relive them all over again right there in the office.

The click of the door closing tore him away from his past and back into the present. Scully walked in slowly and heavy - hearted as she threw her jacket onto a nearby chair. She stood there for awhile; her eyes scanning the side of the room.

"Sorry, I just, um, got stuck in rush hour," she scratched the back of her head uneasily then checked her watch. "Come on, we'll be late for our meeting with Skinner."

Hastily, she turned around and opened the door, but Mulder got there fast enough to shut it back into place. Scully kept her back to her partner and tried to hold in her emotions.

"You don't have to go up there, Scully," he said close to her ear. "Go home. You need to be somewhere else than here.

"No, I'll be fine... really. Let's just get this over with," she replied and opened the door then headed to the upper floor.

All throughout the meeting, Scully kept on wandering off into some distant place all her own. She couldn't concentrate on anything and every time she was asked a question, she had to have Mulder answer for her.

Skinner finally finished after an hour of briefing and handed out the new case files along with photos of the victims and suspects. He asked for Scully to stay a bit before she left.

Mulder gave her a short glance then headed out the door.

"Agent Scully, I want you to go home and take the day off," Skinner said.

"But, Sir-"

He cut her off. "That's an order. I can't have you in the field like this." He placed his hand on her shoulder. "Dana, I know it's hard and you can't keep on building up these stone walls. Believe me, a day away from the office will do you good."

She took this into consideration and nodded. "Thank you, Sir," she said quietly and with that, she headed out the office.

Mulder turned around when he heard the door open and stopped her.

"What did he say?"

"I'm going home for the day. I guess you were right, Mulder. I, um, I'll see you later."

9:26 PM

Mulder unlocked the door to Scully's apartment and stuffed the key back into his pocket. The place was almost silent that he could hear his own breathing. His eyes searched any indication of Scully's presence.

"Scully?" he called out. "Scully, are you here?"

He didn't receive an answer, but found her in William's untouched room shortly after. She was gazing at the small, stuffed toy giraffe almost as if she were in a trance. A tear formed and slid down her cheek and onto the little toy.

"Dana...?" he said quietly.

Her eyes looked up to find him standing there and all at once, she started to break down once again. Mulder wrapped his arms around her and planted light kisses in her hair.

"Oh, Mulder. I miss him so much," she cried on his shoulder with her arms draped around his neck.

"I miss him too," he said next to her ear. "I miss him too..."

Tears ran down her cheeks as bittersweet memories flooded back into her mind. She would never be able to forgive herself for what she did, but it comforted her that she had given him a normal life. The feeling of guilt kept on creeping up and taunting her, but she knew that her choice was the only one that she could have made. Never again would she be able to hold him in her arms.

They stayed with their arms around each other for a long while, trying to comfort the other. William was the best thing that happened to them and for him to be taken away was the hardest to get over. Actually, they knew that they would never get over it. He was the proof of what they've went through and sacrificed. He was their miracle... their son.

They pulled back from each other and Mulder kissed Scully on her forehead, then made his way down to her lips, kissing shed tears along the way.

"I have something that might cheer you up." He went into the family room and brought back a photo.

A small smile appeared upon her lips when she first laid her eyes on it. She let out a few quiet chuckles when she saw William's huge bluish - greenish eyes full of joy and his toothless smile.

"Happy Mother's Day, Dana." He put his arms around her small frame and gazed at the family photo with her.

VAN DE KAMP RESIDENCE  
2 DAYS LATER

Mr. Van de Kamp opened the front door to the porch and found a manila envelope on the front step. He eyed it suspiciously and took it inside.

"What's that?" Mrs. Van de Kamp asked as she was cooking breakfast.

"I don't know. I found it on the porch. Whatever it is, it's pretty light," he replied.

She turned off the stove and walked over to look at the mysterious envelope.

"Huh, it says, TLG in the corner. What do you think that is?"

He shrugged then tore open the top and reached inside to find a photo of a family. In the arms of the redheaded woman was a baby that had a smile plastered on his face. They tried to make sense of it by peering at it closely.

"Honey.." Mrs. Van de Kamp said as she lifted her head slowly.

"What?" he asked.

"It's William's real parents."


End file.
